Use of Digital Infrastructure Will Liberate Learning from the Boundaries of Classrooms

| Dr. Debarshi Mukherjee, Tripura University, Agartala -
03 May 2020

Rise of Ekalavyas: Education in the Post COVID-19 Era

Life in the post-COVID -19 era will never be the same again, time is not far away, when classrooms will become smaller but exposure will be wider. The future of education is transforming into a ubiquitous, lucid structure with a permanent infusion of digital content as a part of the syllabus. Those who would profess rote shall become a dinosaur in the realm of time. Use of digital infrastructure will liberate learning from the boundaries of classrooms and eventually will elevate to a new firmament where Ekalayas will rise to compete with Arjunas.

India spends around US$ 136 billion on research and development which is 0.7% of GDP after China (2.1%, US$533.4 bn), USA (2.8%, US$511.1 bn), and Israel (4.6%).

China’s IP office alone filed 1.54 million patent applications in 2018 which is 46.4% of global total ahead of USA (5971410), Japan (313,567), the Republic of Korea (209, 992), and the European Patent Office (EPO, 174, 397) (WIPI, 2018).

India could file around 47,854 applications around that time and out of which the number of Indian applicants was 15,550 (GoI Annual Report, 2017-18).

By Dr. Debarshi Mukherjee, Agartala, Tripura

Agartala, May 04, 2020: George Orwell once wrote, “If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear."

Today when the world economy is drudging to resume from the abyss of despair, economists are estimating the financial loss, the path to future depends on our endeavour in research and education.

Doctors, administrative and security personnel are venerated for being in the front line defence against COVID-19 but teachers are no lesser warriors as they trudge and train the future generations while their parents are protecting the world.

I could find in the news that certain section of people in the society is extremely critical of the online classes and activities during the lockdown period thereby undermining the efforts of valiant teachers.

Many opine that teaching isn’t an essential service and during the entire period of the lockdown the institutions should stop the online classes and resume only when the lockdown is lifted.

Indeed, many would not consider teaching and learning are as essential as food and medicine, and had it been on the contrary we would have been in a much-developed state.

Interestingly, till date most of the institutes did not care to augment online mode of learning to ensure learning continuity rather discouraged it so far under the garb of overexposure of technology.

The physical presence of the teacher is sought more than productivity resulting in localized teaching. Countries like Canada where population density is quite thin and often fretted by extreme weather conditions or countries like Ghana where both teachers and schools are in short supply have moved on with online teaching decades back and yielding good results.

Gullible people compare themselves with China only to find that China’s IP office alone filed 1.54 million patent applications in 2018 which is 46.4% of global total ahead of USA (5971410), Japan (313,567), the Republic of Korea (209, 992), and the European Patent Office (EPO, 174, 397) (WIPI, 2018).

India could file around 47,854 applications around that time and out of which the number of Indian applicants was 15,550 (GoI Annual Report, 2017-18).

Similar statistics are also available in the number of applications for designs and trademarks.

Another important fact is worth pondering that India spends around US$ 136 billion on research and development which is 0.7% of GDP after China (2.1%, US$533.4 bn), USA (2.8%, US$511.1 bn), and Israel (4.6%).

Do these figures indicate a trend? As far as India’s expenditure on education is concerned India is spending 4.6% (2020) of its GDP with a primary focus on school education whereas China is spending around 8% (2017) of its GDP and that too for the last eight consecutive years.

Though I beseech that there could be many counter-arguments and statistics citing socio-political or demographic compulsions however there could be no denial we need to shift research and education to the priority areas right now.

Life in the post-COVID -19 era will never be the same again, time is not far away, when classrooms will become smaller but exposure will be wider.

The future of education is transforming into a ubiquitous, lucid structure with a permanent infusion of digital content as a part of the syllabus.

We may like it or not, education portals like SWYAM, NPTEL, DIKSHA or SWYAMPRABHA will not remain optional for students rather they are going to contribute a significant portion of the university syllabus in short-run and subsequently invade the school education in the longer run.

Ranging from Google based classrooms to Moodle-based learning management systems, agile and open source technologies have opened a plethora of opportunities to handle data and disseminate information.

How would you like to level with the fact that certain portion of the syllabus is based on online courses available on these portals where the students are required to earn the credit themselves through the credit transfer system?

Yes! You have got it correctly. Interactive e-learning content will be augmented in the regular university system with mature learners seeking for themselves.

If learning continuity is to be ensured then the higher educational institutes must not trivialize this strategic opportunity by intermittent use of technology rather this pandemic situation must remain as a hallmark in the annals of the educational policy framework.

Those who would profess rote shall become a dinosaur in the realm of time. Further, inter-institutional resource sharing will reduce the redundancy in the academic delivery where broadcasting of lectures, sharing of knowledge content across private and secure networks are going to enhance academic productivity.

Use of digital infrastructure will liberate learning from the boundaries of classrooms and eventually will elevate to a new firmament where Ekalayas will rise to compete with Arjunas.

It’s high time that people should take education more seriously else research output shall remain as serendipity rather an ecosystem.

Dr. Debarshi Mukherjeeis engaged into Teaching & Research since over last 19 years; Working as an Associate Professor and HoD of Business Management, Tripura University, a Central University (GoI); Head (i/c) of the Deptt of Tourism Administration, Tripura University; Over 70 publications including a book, and edited books and delivered over 35 invited lectures at various renowned institutions of India.debarshimukherjee@tripurauniv.in

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